Search

Main Navigation

Main Content

[News-Heads]

[ANCHOR=Jean]

[NEWSCAST=11]
[WRITER=jja]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=]
[ENG#=1]

Coming up on News 7-
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

A car accident turns deadly in this region. We'll have details.
Studying school safety in Roanoke City. The Task Force is more than half way there.
and WDBJ-7 teams up with a TV station in the Ukraine.
Joe Dashiell traveled there. He'll have a report tonight.
(------------)
[Talent=Jean]

Join us for News 7 at Eleven.

[Video-Open]

[ANCHOR=Jean]
[NEWSCAST=11]
[WRITER=jja]
[TAPE#=VidOpen]

[ENG#=2]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Do students feel safe in Roanoke City Schools? Tonight, a task force now has a better understanding.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 4:47:06]
[IN Q=There is somethings]
((JIM O'HARE: THERE IS SOMETHINGS THAT DO NEED SOME WORK.))
[RUNS=02]
[OUT Q=do need some work]
(------------)
[ANCHOR =Jean]
[GRAPHIC=News 7 at 11]

[School-Violence]

It's down to the wire for Roanoke's school safety task force.
The group has less than a month to come up with recommendations and issue a report.
[2-Shot=Jean & Justin ;]

Justin McLeod attended tonight's meeting. So Justin what's the progress report?
Jean, right now members are confident they can meet their May deadline.
[LIVE= Justin /FULL ]
[SUPER=@justin1]

They've been busy holding public forums and conducting surveys.
The task now is getting through the mounds of data and making sure the powers that be take their findings seriously.
[ENG#=3]
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke; :00]
[SUPER=01-Jim O'Hare/Task Force Member; :49]
[SUPER=01-Paula Wilder/Task Force Facilitator; 1:10]
[RUNS=1:24]
[OUT Q=MAKE THINGS HAPPEN]
((((NAT SOUND OF MEETING))
They have now met eight times.
It is the task of 31 people to decide what works and what doesn't when it comes to safety in Roanoke schools.
[SOT 4:44:26]
[IN Q=We want to focus]
((PAULA WILDER/TASK FORCE FACILITATOR: WE WANT TO FOCUS NOT JUST THE HONEST BAD BUT ALSO THE HONEST GOOD NEWS.))
[Runs04]
[OUT Q=GOOD NEWS]

That news was collected through a student survey.
It was conducted back in February and more than 35 hundred students responded.
[SOT 4:47:01]
[IN Q=The majority of]
((JIM O'HARE/TASK FORCE MEMBER: THE MAJORITY OF STUDENTS GIVE THE SCHOOLS PASSING GRADES IN SCHOOL SAFETY.))
[Runs04]
[OUT Q=IN SCHOOL SAFETY]

The survey indicated that most students in grades 4, 6, 8, 9, and 11th feel physically safe from violence in school.

When asked where students feel unsafe, the majority said the hallways and then the bathrooms.
Students were then asked what needs to be changed. At the middle and high school levels, the majority said better security is needed.
[SOT 4:48:25]
[IN Q=A lot of the]
((JIM O'HARE/TASK FORCE MEMBERS: A LOT OF THE ANSWERS WERE WRITTEN IN AND SO IT DOES THEY DID PUT SOME THOUGHT INTO THEM.))
[Runs06]
[OUT Q=thought into them]
((NAT SOUND OF MEETING))
The task force will now spend the next two meetings coming up with specific recommendations.
The group will then present their findings to the city on May 20th but some members still fear their work will not be taken seriously.
[SOT 4:45:59]
[IN Q=I think they are]
((PAULA WILDER/TASK FORCE FACILITATOR: I THINK THEY ARE STILL OUT THERE. THE PROOF IS IN THE PUDDING AND UNTIL PEOPLE SEE ACTION THEIR STILL GOING TO REASONABLY HOLD ONTO THAT. BUT WE'VE BEEN REASSURED MULTIPLE TIMES THAT IF WE DO GOOD WORK....MAKE THINGS HAPPEN.))
[Runs12]
[OUT Q=]))
(-------------)
[LIVE= Justin /FULL]

One of the things that disappointed the task force was the lack of response to the parental surveys.
Out of the thousands of parents in Roanoke, only 611 filled out the survey.
[2-Shot=Jean & Justin ;]

As a result Jean, those findings may not make into the final report because it would probaby be inconsistent.

[Child-Report]

[ANCHOR=Jean]
[NEWSCAST=11]
[WRITER=dse]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Meanwhile, a new state report is showing that life is tough for some of the youngest Virginians.
It says 13 percent of Virginians under the age of six live below the federal poverty level.
In Danville, that number jumps to 41 percent.
A team of state and community leaders will meet later this year to review the data and decide on a plan of action.

[Montvale-Wreck]

A teenager injured in an accident on Route 460 has died.
State Troopers say 17 year old Joseph Mullens of Roanoke died this evening at Roanoke Memorial Hospital
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Bedford Co.;]
Officers say shortly before 11 this morning, Mullens' Chevy Cavalier crossed the median and hit a Crown Victoria head on.
The teenager was flown to Roanoke Memorial Hospital by helicopter. He was NOT wearing his seatbelt and was partially ejected from his car.
The other driver, 37-year-old Todd Stone was also injured in the wreck. Stone is the Chief of the Bedford Fire Department, and was last listed in good condition at R-M-H.
(------------)

[Roanoke-Murder]

A 17-year-old wanted for murder in Roanoke is in custody in Northern Virginia.
The teenager was picked up around four this afternoon by Arlington County Police.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke/Last Friday;]
Police say the teen shot 22-year-old Claude Harper last Friday on Rutherford Avenue. Harper died Sunday evening.
Roanoke City detectives will travel to Arlington tomorrow to transport the teen back to Roanoke.
(------------)

[Warner-Bills]

Governor Warner used his pen to take a shot at methadone clinics today.
He signed two bills into law that would ban new clinics within a half mile of a school or day care and would require local governments be notified of new clinic applications.
The new laws won't affect any current clinics.
Warner called the measures a "common sense solution," though the ACLU has threatened a lawsuit if the location restriction is enacted.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Southampton Co./File Tape;]

The governor also signed off on a bill targeting nudist camps for children, though he amended the language to require a parent or guardian actually be present at such a camp.
Advocates of nude recreation say the requirement is unnecessary.
(------------)
[ANCHOR=JEan]
[SS=HOLD]

Warner's staff says he'll release the rest of his actions on bills just before midnight.

The tape airing today is believed to be from bin laden and offers a truce to any nation that stops killing Muslims.

The CIA says the tape is probably authentic because it mentions recent events-
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
((COLIN POWELL/SECRETARY OF STATE: YOU CAN'T NEGOTIATE WITH OSAMA BIN LADEN. HE IS A TERRORIST. HE IS A MURDERER AND HE MUST BE SEEN AS THAT AND HE MUST BE BROUGHT TO JUSTICE.))
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=@Powell;]
[RUNS=07]
[OUT Q=brought to justice.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Tonight French President Jacquest Chirac says his nation also will not deal with terrorists.
The seven minute tape offered no truce with America and said the 9-11 attacks were in retaliation for America's collaboration with jews and its presence in the Gulf.
(-------------)
[ANCHOR=Jean]
[SS=None]

Tonight terrorist threats have prompted the State Department to order most government workers and their families out of Saudi Arabia.
Other Americans are being told to stay away- Only essential government employees will remain.

[Iraq-Troops]

Many U-S troops in Iraq will stay there longer than planned.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

The Defense Department today added three months to what was supposed to be a one year deployment for 20 thousand soldiers.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
((BETTY HUNT/WIFE OF NATIONAL GUARDSMEN: I'M SO FRUSTRATED BECAUSE WE'RE HELPLESS. WE FEEL LIKE THERE'S NOTHING WE CAN DO.))
[SUPER=01-Betty Hunt/Wife of National Guardsman;]
[RUNS=07]
[OUT Q=nothing we can do.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[super=03-Baghdad, Iraq;]

The news comes amid more violence in Iraq- Today an Iranian diplomat was shot dead while driving near his embassy.
Meanwhile the hostage situation remains critical. Three Japanese hostages were released today, but more than a dozen more foreigners are still missing in Iraq.
(------------)

[Russians-Flee]

Many Russian citizens living in Iraq made their way home tonight.
Three planes ferried over 350 workers- after the Russian government requested they leave Iraq- for fear of more kidnappings.
Beth Knobel has the latest from Moscow.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=03-Moscow, Russia; :14]
[SUPER=01-Beth Knobel/Reporting; 1:22]
[RUNS=1:45]
[OUT Q=CBS News, Moscow]
((It was a bittersweet homecoming.
Hundreds of ex soviet citizens fled Iraq for Moscow under heavy security, in an evacuation organized by the Russian government.
Three planes ferried over 360 workers from Baghdad to Moscow, mostly Ukrainians and Russians. Another four planes will make the trip to Baghdad and Kuwait on Friday to take hundreds more.
These people, who worked for a Russian energy company, said they decided to leave Iraq because it's become too dangerous for foreigners.
"It's a pity," said this man. "The situation is very hard, very tense --and that's why we're going home."
Though numerous foreigners have been kidnapped in Iraq, the final straw for many was the abduction Monday of eight men who worked for a Russian firm, who were taken from their house in Baghdad. Even though the men were released unharmed the next day, some Russian firms said that was the sign it was time to go.
But despite the risk, some have decided not to leave--including some of the men who were kidnapped, according to their boss.
Russia, which bitterly opposed the US-led war in Iraq, used the homecoming to blame the US for faltering security in Iraq.
"We can't make people leave," said Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, "but we told all Russian citizens that if they stay, they're facing a growing risk."
Most of those evacuated were working on a billion dollar Russian contract to restore Iraq's electricity system, trying to bring power plants on line before demand peaks during the hot summer months--and that work is now in jeopardy.
Though they're headed home--many of these specialists hope they'll be able to return to Iraq someday to finish the job. BK, CBS News, Moscow.))

[Sports-preview]

(MINI OPEN)

[ANCHOR=Jean]
[NEWSCAST=11pm]
[WRITER=sba]
[TAPE#=04-05 TC1:36:06]
[GRAPHIC=DMV]
[ENG#=1]
There's a bump in the road for residents who relied on the D-M-V's mobile service.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Craig Co.]
The service stopped at the beginning of the month.
The travel teams, as they're known, would go into small communities like Floyd, Gretna and New Castle to provide licensing services.
For folks in Craig County, that means they'll have to drive more than 30-miles to the DMV office in Roanoke.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT@13:51:58:16]
[INQ=I'm going to...]
((LORRAINE MUNCEY, CRAIG CO. RESIDENT: I'M GOING TO HAVE TO SIT AT LEAST AN HOUR OR TWO IN THE OFFICE TO GET WAITED ON.
IT'S A PAIN..))
[SUPER=01-Lorraine Muncey/Craig Co. Resident]
[RUNS=:09]
[OUTQ=... it's a pain.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
A spokeswoman says the DMV stopped offering the service because it wasn't being used and wasn't cost effective.
(------------)

[Clearbrook]

A volunteer rescue squad in Roanoke County is under new leadership even as it attempts to hang onto its operating license.
(------------)
[VO-NAT :20]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke Co./Last Week;]
Officials with the county say members of the Clearbrook squad voted last weekend to "cease" the duties of chief Lee Bibbs and president Don Kelley.
It's unclear who's taken over their responsibilities.
The squad is under investigation after an audit turned up what one official described as possibly "inappropriate" financial action.
(------------)
[ANCHOR=Jean]
[GRAPHIC=None]
The Commonwealth's attorney confirms a search warrant was issued in *Franklin* County.
A motorcycle was seized as part of the investigation.
The squad's Operational Medical Director recently resigned after learning of the case.
Without an OMD, members are not allowed to respond to emergency calls.
Clearbrook has until the end of the month to fill the position or risk losing its license.

[ACV-Anthem]

[ANCHOR=JEan]
[NEWSCAST=11PM]
[WRITER=jus]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=None]

News tonight for patients caught in the middle of a dispute between an insurance company and a group of local doctors.
35 Anesthesiologists in Roanoke and the New River Valley recently pulled out of the Anthem benefit network.
The doctors argued Anthem reimbursements were unreasonably low.
Today, the group announced it had reached an agreement with Anthem and therefore will once again be part of the health plan network.
Details of that agreement have not been released.

[Surveillance]

So long to grainy surveillance camera where you can barely make out the person.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Portland, OR;]

A store in Portland, Oregon is taking surveillance to a new level.
It's installed a computer that captures clear, crisp picutres with nearly half a dozen cameras strategically placed around the store.
Now the store owners hope the surveillance system will hlep them catch a robber.
They say this man walked into the store with a handgan in his right hand and robbed the market.
(------------)

Spring finally returns to Central and Southwest Virginia. Will it last?
Brent has the forecast when News 7 returns.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]

And this race is no walk in the park.
We'll run across the Sahara desert.
(----------------)

[Commercial]

[Ukraine]

[ANCHOR=Jean]
[NEWSCAST=11]
[WRITER=jda]
[TAPE#=04-11 TC40:25]
[GRAPHIC=None]
[ENG#=1]
Thousands of miles separate western Virginia from western Ukraine... but a partnership is now developing between WDBJ-7 and a television station in the city of Ivano-Frankvisk. (Ivano FRAHN- kifsk)
Joe Dashiell recently returned from Ukraine, and tonight he takes a closer look at the region.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=The Soviet Legacy]
[SUPER=03-Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine; :06]
[SUPER=@Joe1; :19]
[SUPER=10-Zinoviy Shkutiyak/Ivano-Frankivsk Mayor/Voice of Interpreter; 1:13]
[RUNS=1:45]
[OUT Q=JD News 7]

((The soviet legacy is evident in the massive architecture of the capital, Kyiv.
But in many areas there is also an old-world charm that owes more to European roots than Russian ones.
[NAT SOUND OF VIOLINIST]
[STAND-UP BRIDGE]
Ivano-Frankivsk is located in western Ukraine, in an area that was once part of Poland.
Today, it's a bustling city of 250- thousand that reflects the problems and the promise of this country.
The week before Easter, the Red Cross was handing out food to elderly pensioners.
In a country where the average wage is only about one hundred dollars a month, many live in poverty.
Adequate, affordable housing is in short supply.
And the aging soviet-era infrastructure is in obvious need of replacement and repair.
But there are also unmistakable signs that conditions are improving.
New construction, and renovations to the city's historic district are a point of pride for residents...
[NAT SOUND FROM WOMAN ON DOWNTOWN MALL]
And for the mayor, who has made civic improvements a priority of his administation.
[SOT MAYOR]
[IN Q=]
[RUNS=]
[OUT Q=]
A dozen years after Independence, Ukrainian Democracy is still evolving.
And with a presidential election scheduled in October, there is a sense that Ukraine is standing at an important crossroads.
Tomorrow, we'll take a closer look at the role of the independent media, and visit the television station in western Ukraine that now has a relationship with western Virginia.
Joe Dashiell News 7))

[S-Extra]

Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, Kevin Harvick, and Elliott Sadler joined fans to support the Victory Junction gang at the Salem Civic center, Ganassi racing is of to a nice Nextel start, Tech and UVa spring football but first our extra point.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-New York, NY; :00]

Chris Byrd weighed 210 and a 1/2 pounds to 237 and a 1/2 LBS for Andrew Golota, who will challenge him for the IBF heavyweight title at Madison Square Garden. Byrd is defending his title for the second time since winning it against Evander Holyfield in December 2002. Golota will be fighting at the Garden for the first time since he was disqualified for low blows against Riddick Bowe in July 1996.
(------------)
[go to scores]
[go to break]
[SUPER=#556;]
[SUPER=x5011;]
[SUPER=0093-/Salem/3/j/Frederick/8////Wilmington/0/j/Lynchburg/5///;]
[SUPER=x5010;]
[SUPER=0091-j/Toronto/11//Detroit/0////Oakland/2/j/Texas/7///;]
[SUPER=x5009;]
[SUPER=0091-/Kansas City/5/j/Chicago/6//Final in 10 Innings//Baltimore/7//Boston/7/10//;]
[SUPER=x5009;]
[SUPER=0091-j/Minnesota/3//Cleveland/0////Seattle/0//Anaheim/2/2//;]
[SUPER=x5009;]
[SUPER=0092-/Atlanta/0/j/N.Y. Mets/4////Houston/2/j/Milwaukee/6///;]
[SUPER=x5009;]
[SUPER=0092-/Pittsburgh/5/j/Chicago/10///j/Arizona/11//Colorado/10///;]
[SUPER=x5031;]
[SUPER=0103-j/Montreal/5//Boston/1////Nashville/1/j/Detroit/4///;]
[RUNS=:35]
[OUTCUE=last score."]
(------------------)

[S-Junction]

The 2nd annual Kroger Meet the Drivers night went off without a hitch at the Salem Civic Center, kicking off a busy Advance Auto Parts 500 weekend.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Salem; :00]

An estimated crowd between three and four thousand race fans showed up for an autograph tonight.
Kyle Petty was joined by Brendan Gaughan, Matt Kenseth, Elliott Sadler, Ricky Craven, Kevin Harvick, Jeff Green, and Jeff Gordon. It was all in the name of Petty's Victory Junction Gang Camp which is scheduled to open this summer in North Carolina.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Brendan Gaughan/Kodak Dodge Driver; :02]
[SUPER=01-Jeff Gordon/9th in Nextel Cup Points; :18]
[RUNS=:36]
[OUT Q=give back more."]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Sadler is the most recent winner on the Nextel Cup circuit, going to victory lane two weeks ago at Texas. The Emporia native hopes to have similar luck this weekend in Martinsville where he has finished outside the top 20 in 8 of his 10 races.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Elliott Sadler/5th in Nextel Cup Points; :00]
[RUNS=:11]
[OUT Q=a lot of it's on our side."]
(------------------)
[anchor=steve]
[graphic=advance auto 500]

Qualifying gets underway tomorrow afternoon at 3.

[S-Advance]

The "3M" Ganassi Racing team of Marlin, McMurray, Mears has made improvements from last season when the three drivers were 13th, 18th and 35 in points.
(---------------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Martinsville; :00]
McMurray is 13th in points, proving his consistency. Marlin, who was 18th in the standings a season a go, is now 14th in points and Mears has jumped from 35th in points to 18th.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Sterling Marlin/14th in Nextel Cup Points; :03]
[SUPER=01-Jamie McMurray/13th in Nextel Cup Points; :16]
[RUNS=:35]
[OUT Q=......big difference"]
(---------------)

[S-MLB]

Plenty of Major League baseball to talk about.
(----------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Philadelphia, PA; :00]
In the National League today, The Reds make their rookie pitcher Ryan Wagner sport some kind of barbie doll back pack to the mound to pitch.
Then, Philadelphia's Mike Lieberthal hit a 3 run homer in the eight inning off him.
[SUPER=35-Cincinnati/4/Philidelphia/6]
The Phils win their first home game of the season, beating the Reds 6 to 4.
(------------)

[WIPE WIPE WIPE]

[S-Diamond]

[ENG#=1]
[WIPE WIPE WIPE]
(------------)
[VO-NAT wipe to #eng!!!]
[SUPER=03-San Juan, Puerto Rico/Marlins vs. Expos; :00]
Down on the mound in Puerto Rico, the Expos could not fight Marlin pitcher Carl Pavano's 3 game shut out streak. Florida has not given up a run in a team record 30 innings.
[SUPER=35-Florida/5/Puerto Rico/0]
Hee Seop Choi's (HE SOP CHOY'S) home run in the 4th inning sealed the win for Florida. The Marlins defeat the Expos 5 - nothing.
(-----------------)

[S-Hokies]

Three spring football practices remain before Virginia Tech's annual Maroon & White game Saturday.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg; :00]
Head coach Frank Beamer has called this the most critical spring practice period in his 18 seasons at Tech.
The sense of urgency is not just for the players, but also for the coaches.
No changes were made to the staff in the off-season - meaning each and every person needs to prove his worth.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=BITE]
[SUPER=01-Frank Beamer/18th Season at Virginia Tech; :00]
[RUNS=:28]
[OUT Q=...last few years."]
(------------)

[S-Cavs]

UVa wraps up spring football Saturday with the spring festival. Even though the 2004 campaign is five months away, the on field enthusiasm has been like mid season.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Wali Lundy/929 Yards Rushing, 10 TD's Last Season; :00]
[RUNS=:08]
[OUT Q=.....being that good"]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Charlottesville; :00]

Wali Lundy returns as the UVa starter at tailback, a unit stocked with several good backs. Lundy says he's better this spring than he was last season.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[RUNS=:11]
[OUT Q=....run people over this year"]
(------------)

It's the Marathon des Sables, a 250 kilometer footrace across the Sahara Desert... That's 155 miles to me and you.
More than eight-thousand runners are taking part in the seven-day long adventure... facing sandstorms, intense heat and dehydration.
The race should reach the finish line this weekend in Morocco.
(------------)